Federal Reserve (The Fed)

Jay Mallin/Bloomberg News

News about Federal Reserve (The Fed), including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Mar. 28, 2015

Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet L Yellen says Fed plans to raise interest rates at slower pace than in past recoveries is due to fragility of American economy; makes remarks at speech in San Francisco, hours after Commerce Dept reported economy grew at 2.2 percent rate in fourth quarter of 2014. MORE

Mar. 25, 2015

BlueMountain Capital Management announces it has hired Jeremy C Stein, former member of of Federal Reserve board, as consultant to advise managers on issues like implications of Fed monetary policy. MORE

Mar. 21, 2015

Departure of Richard W Fisher from Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, where he has been president for a decade, marks loss of one of the most vocal opponents of Fed's stimulus campaign even as that campaign comes to end; Fisher was known for eloquent arguments that were often more colorful than any of those of his colleagues, and often angered those who believed Fed should do more to help unemployed. MORE

Mar. 19, 2015

Federal Reserve says it could raise interest rates as early as June 2015, but mitigates statement by citing economists' forecasts that unemployment rate may continue to fall without triggering higher inflation; Fed Chairwoman Janet L Yellen declares agency will not rush to raise benchmark rate, suggesting raises, expected to be to roughly 0.75 percent, will not happen until second half of year; short-term rates have been near zero since December 2008. MORE

Mar. 19, 2015

The Upshot; Federal Reserve chairwoman Janet L Yellen makes it clear in news conference that Fed will not change low interest rates until it is certain that economic growth will continue without them; Yellen's statements, along with other announcements made by Fed's policy committee, also confirm that Fed will seek to be as flexible as possible to adapt to economic conditions. MORE

Mar. 17, 2015

The Upshot; actions of Federal Reserve in trying to aid economy are having outsize, often unpredictable repercussions worldwide, due to dollar's central importance in global financial system; years of low-interest-rate policies from Fed have caused companies outside United States to assume $9.2 trillion in dollar loans, up 50 percent since 2009. MORE

Mar. 13, 2015

James B Stewart Common Sense column observes that 10 years after former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke announced end of 'Fedspeak,' news media, financial analysts and investors are still tussling with bank's ambiguous statements and pronouncements; wonders if language itself is up to the linguistic task for better communication. MORE

Mar. 12, 2015

Federal Reserve announces that all large United States banks passed an annual regulatory test intended to determine whether institutions can survive financial and economic calamity; Fed stress-tested 31 banks in total, and American units of Deutsche Bank and Santander failed tests outright; Fed says Bank of America passed provisionally due to poor internal controls and for way it projected losses and revenues. MORE

Mar. 9, 2015

Paul Krugman Op-Ed column argues American economy has entered phase of job creation and low inflation reminiscent of unprecedented period between 1995 and 2005; argues Federal Reserve should be cautious about raising interest rates, as economy could potentially generate millions more jobs before it begins to truly overheat. MORE

Mar. 8, 2015

Gretchen Morgenson Fair Game column examines newly released minutes of Federal Reserve Board meetings from 2009; notes while biggest fears of critics of Fed programs to stabilize credit markets in wake of 2008 crisis never came to pass, regulators would do well to do the kinds of cost-benefit analyses of liquidity programs before another crisis ensues. MORE

Mar. 7, 2015

Labor Dept reports employers increased payrolls by 295,000 jobs in February, briging unemployment rate down to 5.5 percent, but that wages continue to lag and rose only 0.1 percent for private-sector workers; report spurs new round of optimism despite wage numbers and speculation that Federal Reserve may raise interest rates earlier rather than later. MORE

Mar. 7, 2015

Editorial contends that American economy is less healthy than jobs report suggests, and cautions Federal Reserve against raising interest rates too quickly; holds reduction of unemployment rate to 5.5 percent and addition of 295,000 jobs belies stagnant wage growth and persistent unemployment among minorities; urges Fed to wait until wages are keeping pace with inflation and productivity. MORE

Mar. 7, 2015

News Analysis; Labor Dept jobs report suggesting job market is on track presents Federal Reserve chairwoman Janet Yellen with quandary of whether to raise interest rates in near term to address possibility of inflation; decision is likely to shape how Yellen and Fed under her leadership will be viewed by history. MORE

Mar. 6, 2015

Federal Reserve, assessing stress test results of nation's 31 largest banks, says they have enough financial means to survive another egregious crisis in nation's economy; no bank had capital under minimum requirements. MORE

Mar. 5, 2015

Federal Reserve releases transcripts of its 2009 policy meetings that show former chairman Ben Bernanke and other members of Fed were afflicted by doubts about agency's ability to address nation's economic problems; transcripts reveal concern about political and economic consequences, as well, of actions Fed might have taken; meetings show another chapter in how Fed went from single-minded focus on inflation to focusing on stabilizing financial system and reviving job growth. MORE

Mar. 5, 2015

The Upshot; annual release of transcripts of Federal Reserve meetings offer window into internal working of Fed and personalities of its members, including disputes and moments of levity; several examples of interesting, revelatory or amusing sections found in transcripts from 2009 provided. MORE

Mar. 5, 2015

The Upshot; News Analysis; released transcripts of Federal Reserve meetings from 2009 reveal recurring theme of policy makers worrying about small issues even as global and American economies were in crisis; what is most striking is how even though there was wide understanding of severity of crisis, it did not translate necessarily into sense of great urgency. MORE

Mar. 1, 2015

Jeff Sommer Strategies column examines difficulty for average investors in trying to parse Federal Reserve reports and quarterly corporate data; notes that markets are continuing to rise despite unimpressive company reports, trend that is common in lead-up to interest rate hike. MORE

Mar. 1, 2015

Adam Davidson On Money column observes that in wake of financial crisis investors across globe clung to surest thing, namely the dollar, rather than accepting lack of certainty inherent in finance; suggests Federal Reserve chairwoman Janet Yellen could prod investors to take more risks by making investors more afraid of what she can do, which would in turn prompt realization that world of uncertainty can be richer one. MORE

Feb. 28, 2015

Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer says in panel discussion at annual monetary policy conferences that Fed's relationship with financial markets should be more mysterious; comment signals that era of Fed's detailed guidance in wake of financial crisis is ending. MORE

Feb. 27, 2015

Federal Reserve and Office of Comptroller of the Currency invite public to open meeting in Los Angeles on $3.4 billion merger of CIT Group and OneWest bank; hear many comments about banks investing in local communities, particularly from banks that got federal bailouts. MORE

Feb. 26, 2015

Republicans on House Financial Services Committee call for more congressional oversight of Federal Reserve during three-hour hearing and accuse Chairwoman Janet L Yellen of using central bank to advance liberal policy goals; it is Yellen's second day appearing before committee and she offers no new insights into likely course of monetary policy. MORE

Feb. 25, 2015

Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet L Yellen, appearing before Congress, reports satisfaction with economic growth; signals possibility of interest rate increase as early as June 2015, but emphasizes that patience will be key amid persistently sluggish inflation. MORE

Feb. 19, 2015

Official account of Federal Reserve's January policy-making meeting shows that it is concerned about slow pace of inflation, fragile economic growth and risk that raising benchmark interest rate too early could reverse recent gains. MORE

Feb. 7, 2015

Federal Reserve reports increased consumer borrowing in December 2014, expansion of $14.8 billion, which pushes consumer debt to record $3.31 trillion; expansion may indicate that consumer spending will increase as shoppers gain confidence from strong jobs data to increase their debt. MORE

Jan. 29, 2015

Federal Reserve issues upbeat assessment of economic conditions after meeting of Federal Open Market Committee and indicates that it will not raise short-term interest rates before June; statement leaves time frame for when Fed will raise benchmark interest rate from near zero open. MORE

Jan. 26, 2015

Three Chicago residents cited by Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet L Yellen in March 2014 speech are still struggling financially but are slowly improving their lot; Jermaine Brownlee, Dorine Poole and Vicki Lira are working, but making less money than before recession; their stories highlight how recovery is still incomplete even as Fed wants to raise its benchmark interest rate in mid-2015. MORE

Jan. 17, 2015

Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that index of consumer prices rose just 0.8 percent in 2014, slowest pace of inflation during an economic recovery in the last half-century; figure represents evidence that recovery is still incomplete, and could hamper the Federal Reserve as it seeks to retreat from stimulus. MORE

Jan. 16, 2015

Labor Dept reports Producer Price Index declined 0.3 percent in December, largest drop in more than three years; declining prices amount to cautionary signal for the Federal Reserve as it mulls over potential shifts in monetary policy; also reports claims for weekly unemployment benefits rose by 19,000 to seasonally adjusted 316,000. MORE

Jan. 15, 2015

Federal Reserve issues beige book report that finds signs of moderate or modest economic growth in 12 regional banking districts in December 2014 and first part of January 2015; Fed warns that low gasoline prices are beginning to affect some industries. MORE

Jan. 10, 2015

Federal Reserve reports that it transferred record-breaking estimated $98.7 billion in profits from its bond-buying campaign to Treasury Dept in 2014, which it is required to do by law, bringing total over past five years to $421 billion; program helped reduce growth of federal debt and has been boon to taxpayers, but Fed plans to increase benchmark interest rates, which will reduce its profits. MORE

Jan. 10, 2015

Labor Dept reports total employment numbers were up in December 2014 and unemployment rate improved to 5.6 percent; while numbers offer positive outlook for United States economy in 2015, decline in average hourly earnings suggests that economic recovery is still incomplete; combination of low unemployment and low wages complicates matters for Federal Reserve, which is expected to raise interest rates in 2015 for first time in years. MORE

Jan. 9, 2015

Federal Reserve reports consumer borrowing rose by $14.1 billion in November following a $16 billion increase in October, pushing consumer debt excluding real estate loans to $3.3 trillion, indicating that consumers have become more comfortable with debt amid economic recovery. MORE

Jan. 8, 2015

Federal Open Market Committee minutes from December 2014 meeting reveal Fed officials were more optimistic about domestic economy while still concerned about global economy; notes suggest Fed will continue to keep interest rates low for some time. MORE

Jan. 7, 2015

Pres Obama will nominate former Bank of Hawaii chief executive Allan R Landon to seat on the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors; nomination follows months of lobbying by the community banking industry, which had sought at least one representative of banking sector on board. MORE

Jan. 5, 2015

Paul Krugman Op-Ed column questions how much Pres Obama should be credited with rapid improvement in the economic recovery; points out while economists have historically emphasized the role of the Federal Reserve over the White House, Obama has been effective in terms of emergency stimulus spending and shielding the Fed from political opposition; holds those who blamed economic doldrums on Obama must face fact that they appear foolish. MORE

Jan. 2, 2015

Statements by Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank, led investors to conclude that the bank would soon buy large quantities of eurobonds. MORE

Dec. 28, 2014

Editorial asserts that Federal Reserve has made economically sound decision in deciding not to lift interest rates, but that it has been less wise in its approach to managing asset bubbles that threaten to inflate when interest rates are low for too long; holds that way to mitigate risk is through increased regulation of banks and other financial institutions. MORE

Dec. 23, 2014

Former central bank officials and experts in economics assess Federal Reserve chairwoman Janet L Yellen's first year in the role; Yellen has in many ways continued policies of her predecessor Ben S Bernanke, but she is expected to define her approach more distinctly in 2015 as Fed considers when to raise benchmark interest rate for first time in decade; most obvious change Yellen has introduced has been emphasis on highlighting problems of workers and unemployment. MORE

Dec. 20, 2014

Narayan Kocherlakota, president of Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, says in interview that Federal Reserve's move toward raising interest rates increase risk that economy will sink into long-lasting period of low inflation; had voted against measures announced by central bank. MORE

Dec. 18, 2014

Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet L Yellen says central bank still expects to start raising interest rates in 2015, but stresses that despite promising signs in economy, it will not begin sooner than late April. MORE

Dec. 16, 2014

Many economists think diminishing unemployment and increased hiring are about to result in higher wages for middle class workers; overall wages rose 0.4 percent in November; extent of wage increases are in question, but Federal Reserve may leave interest rates as low as possible until definite trend is seen. MORE

Dec. 13, 2014

Narayana Kocherlakota says that he will step down as president of Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis at end of his term in 2016; Kocherlakota will become third Fed dissenter in 2014 to announce plans to leave central bank. MORE

Nov. 29, 2014

Editorial warns that deteriorating economic conditions in Asia and Europe bode ill for United States; holds that malaise overseas has already thrown pall over American markets, with growth projected to slow more; chides Federal Reserve for its dismissive attitude toward trend and calls for delayed reduction in monetary stimulus until signs of sustained recovery are clear. MORE

Nov. 24, 2014

Paul Krugman Op-Ed column calls it both amazing and depressing that the Federal Reserve has held interest rates at zero for six years, forging what he calls a 'rock bottom' economy; holds trend has resulted in a counterintuitive environment in which business leaders and regulators are regularly concerned about wrong issues; warns trends may yet continue despite positive economic news. MORE

Nov. 23, 2014

Gretchen Morgenson Fair Game column examines Federal Reserve's campaign to elicit input on whether big-bank examiners have sufficient access to information, noting that it is an about-face from institution's tradition of secrecy; asserts that change is essentially damage control as Fed scrambles amid criticism over its practices. MORE

Nov. 20, 2014

Official account of Federal Reserve policy-making committee's October meeting shows sluggish pace of inflation is replacing unemployment as main reason Fed is not ready to start raising interest rates. MORE

Nov. 14, 2014

Editorial praises Federal Reserve and its chair, Janet Yellen, for exercising restraint in raising interest rates despite drop in unemployment; warns, however, that by creating expectation of higher rates in 2015, Fed may justify premature increase by overstating progress of job market, danger that is intensified by pressure to raise rates. MORE